What happened
During an arrival from Yerevan, the flight crew began their approach into Aleppo amidst moderate turbulence. As the aircraft transitioned to the final stage of the landing sequence, it became unstable and was found to be out of trim. The aircraft subsequently entered a rapid descent, dropping at a rate of 5.5 meters per second before making contact with the runway surface.
The force of the impact caused the undercarriage to detach from the airframe. Following the initial strike, the aircraft slid along the runway, eventually overrunning the paved surface and breaking into two separate sections. The incident resulted in at least 60 injuries among those on board.
Findings
Investigations determined that the crew attempted to continue a visual approach despite the presence of moderate turbulence and an unstable flight profile. A critical factor was the manual adjustment of the aircraft's trim, which shifted the center of gravity behind the allowable limit. This improper approach configuration led to the loss of stability during the final descent.